With the explosion of applications—voice, video and data—on the network, server load balancers are critical for optimizing resources in the data center. CRN Test Center engineers recently put the AX2000 from A10 Networks through its paces, installing it on a test network with three quad-core servers.

In an interview with CMP Channel, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates touted the vendor's entrance into the VoIP market as an evolution that will change the way customers communicate. He also downplayed the likelihood of Google and open-source VoIP staking a claim in the enterprise space, and revealed how his own work life has changed as a result of the technology.

A wave of IT retiress is expected to hit California and other states over the next five years, creating a huge opportunity for government VARs, but solution providers say recent retirees turned consultants could limit their access to state contracts.

California state CIO J. Clark Kelso told VARs attending CMP's 2007 GovernmentVAR State and Local Roadshow that a wave of retirements expected to hit the state over the next five years means a boom awaits solution providers that can help California upgrade and maintain its IT infrastructure.